


Arms

by Aleigh75



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: F/M, Magic, Sappy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-02-10
Updated: 2015-02-10
Packaged: 2018-03-11 11:31:46
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,079
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3325892
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Aleigh75/pseuds/Aleigh75
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>I kind of hated "Apprentice" so this is how I wish the end of "Rocky Road" had gone. Also, the song "Arms" by Christina Perri really makes me think of Emma every time I hear it, so that partially inspired this.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Arms

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer: I don't own them, and I never will. I just write this stuff because my muse won't shut up otherwise. 
> 
> I know in the episode where Emma saw Hook's arm in the hospital, his stump stopped just below his elbow, but in the episode where Rumple cut off his hand, it was right at his wrist, so I'm going with that version. And, of course, the dialogue at the very beginning is from "Rocky Road," not my own. 
> 
> I'm currently without a pc or a beta, writing on my phone. Please excuse any mistakes!

"Arms" by Christina Perri

I never thought that you would be the one to hold my heart  
But you came around and you knocked me off the ground from the start

You put your arms around me  
And I believe that it's easier for you to let me go.  
You put your arms around me and I'm home

How many times will you let me change my mind and turn around?  
I can't decide if I'll let you save my life or if I'll drown

I hope that you see right through my walls  
I hope that you catch me 'cause I'm already falling  
I'll never let a love get so close  
You put your arms around me and I'm home

The world is coming down on me and I can't find a reason to be loved  
I never wanna leave you but I can't make you bleed if I'm alone

You put your arms around me  
And I believe that it's easier for you to let me go...

I hope that you see right through my walls  
I hope that you catch me, 'cause I'm already falling  
I'll never let a love get so close  
You put your arms around me and I'm home

I tried my best to never let you in to see the truth  
And I've never opened up  
I've never truly loved 'til you put your arms around me  
And I believe that it's easier for you to let me go

I hope that you see right through my walls  
I hope that you catch me, 'cause I'm already falling  
I'll never let a love get so close  
You put your arms around me and I'm home

You put your arms around me and I'm home

***

Emma faltered slightly when she pushed her way out of Granny's and spotted Killian sprawled in a chair at one of the little wrought iron tables scattered around the small patio; she thought it might be the same table they had kissed at just days earlier. Her stomach fluttered at the memory of his confession about giving up his beloved ship just to find her. No one had ever done anything like that for her, not even Neal.

Pushing her thoughts aside, she ducked her head and picked up her pace, hoping to get past without him spotting her.

"Swan, don't make a man drink alone."

So much for that. "I'm not in the mood for a drink," she replied quickly. "Or a man," she added, walking even faster as he rose to his feet. She was almost to the gate, and had this insane hope that if she reached it quickly enough, he'd just leave her alone. She just couldn't deal with him, with her feelings for him, so soon after almost losing him earlier. She was still shaking from seeing him trapped under those icicles. Her magic had been flaring up at random ever since, like her body hadn't yet gotten the message that he was safe. For now anyway.

Reaching the gate, she rushed across the sidewalk, not even looking when she started across the street. She'd almost welcome a near miss with traffic right now. It would give her an excuse to expel some of the excess energy that was rising up inside her again at his presence.

"I'm sorry I didn't listen to you today," Killian called after her, his voice right behind her. Damn. "Alright, I know you feel like you have the weight of the world on your shoulders, but at some point, even though we're quite different, you've got to trust me," his voice was soft and pleading as he (literally) hooked her arm and gently turned her to face him, right in the middle of Main Street. 

Emma was stunned, but not by his actions. "That's what you think this is about? That I don't trust you?" How could he possibly think that at this point? After everything they'd been through...

His brow crinkled with confusion as he asked, "Is that not what this is about?" It was sort of adorable, really, but she couldn't focus on that right now.

"Of course I trust you!" She blurted frustratedly. 

"Then why do you keep pulling away from me?" In contrast to his usual confidence and snark, the hurt in his eyes right now was almost palpable, and Emma inhaled sharply, feeling almost like she'd been punched in the stomach. 

"Because everyone I've ever been with is dead!" She exclaimed before she could stop herself. He blinked in surprise, then winced, his expression shifting from hurt to something disturbingly like pity. "Neal and Graham," she continued, deciding that whatever part of her brain was supposed to censor her mouth was fired. "Even Walsh. I lost everyone." Her voice cracked and she wished the ground would open up and swallow her. It wasn't that far fetched...it hadn't been so long since she'd been trapped in the ice cave, right? Of course, wishing failed her once again, and now Killian was looking at her so sympathetically that something in her twisted. All the fight drained out of her and she decided to just lay everything on the table. "I...I can't lose you, too."

He just stared at her for a moment, then raised an eyebrow ever so slightly. "Well, love, you don't have to worry about me," he drawled slowly. 

Emma's heart skipped a beat as she wondered if he was picking now to finally listen to all of her attempts to get him to back off. She had thought she'd feel relief when the moment finally came, but instead she was afraid she might throw up. 

"If there's one thing that I'm good at, it's surviving," Killian said slowly, the corner of his mouth quirking up in a teasing grin as he moved even closer. 

Emma let out a breath she hadn't even realized she was holding, and stepped closer to him in return, smiling sheepishly. Then his lips were on hers, and she sighed with relief and wrapped her arms around his neck as she tilted her head, deepening their kiss. Killian growled, a soft, low rumble deep in his chest and Emma smiled against his mouth. "You do seem to be remarkably lucky..."

"That's what I'm telling you, love. I bet my incredible good fortune trumps whatever silly curse you think you have..." He drew his head back slightly, looking her in the eyes as he wrapped his arms tightly around her waist, pulling her almost impossibly closer. "I love you, Emma. More than I've ever loved anyone...even Milah. And I know you love me, too. Please don't run from this anymore. Don't run from me anymore." The intensity of the emotion in his eyes seemed to burn into her and she had to look away. He cupped her cheek in his hand and forced her to look back. "Emma." She'd never heard her name sound so pleading before. So much like a prayer. 

"I love you," she whispered, shifting just her eyes away from his since the rest of her head was trapped. "I love you, but I'm scared. That's why I'm scared," she added, gazing past him at nothing in particular.

"Nothing's going to happen to me, love," he ducked his head, forcing her to make eye contact once again. "I don't have the best track record with relationships myself, but I'm pretty sure I'd rather take a chance with you than live with the regret I'd surely feel if I didn't at least try to make this work."

Emma bit her lip anxiously and he gave her such a deliberate, exaggerated puppy dog look that she couldn't help but laugh despite her fears. "You're impossible."

"I'm Captain Hook," he grinned mischievously. "You're the daughter of Snow White and Prince Charming. All things considered, I'm pretty sure nothing's impossible here, love."

Emma rolled her eyes, then stretched up on her toes to kiss the slightly gloating expression off his face. It probably wasn't the most effective method because she felt his smile grow even wider beneath her lips. Before she could come up with a better plan to put him in his place (her mind was a bit fuzzy once he slid his tongue between her lips and brought his hand up to cup the back of her head) they were suddenly interrupted by a blinding light and the jarring blare of a horn.

"Right. Still in the middle of the street," she muttered absently without really breaking the kiss. Grabbing the lapels of Killian's coat she pushed him backwards until they reached the sidewalk. The vehicle's driver honked again, short and quick as they passed and Emma waved distractedly without looking to see who it was.

"I think I'm going to be having another embarrassing conversation with your father in the very near future," Killian mumbled ruefully. 

"What? No!" Emma jerked away from him, turning her head just in time to see the back of David's truck rounding the corner. "Oh god!" She whimpered, burying her face against his chest. "You really are gonna die..."

"I'm pretty sure I can take Charming in a fight if it comes down to it," he chuckled, rubbing her arm soothingly with his hand while he used his hook to catch one of her belt loops and pull her closer. "Maybe we should take this somewhere a bit more private though?" He bit his lower lip and tilted his head toward the inn.

The inn where he had a room that was presumably completely free of parents, newborn siblings and mysterious magical ice princesses. Emma's heart rate sped up as a mixed wave of nervousness and excitement swept over her. "I...uh..."

"I'm not trying to pressure you, love," Killian said quickly, obviously sensing her growing panic. "If you want, we can just go inside the cafe and get some coffee. Talk some more. I would just like to spend more time with you."

Emma stared at him for several seconds. She knew what she wanted, it was trying to get up the courage to go after it that was the problem. "Um...it's a little late for coffee, don't you think?" She asked finally. 

Killian's face fell for just a fraction of a second, but he managed to force a smile as he asked, "Maybe tea then?"

Emma took a deep breath. "I was thinking about going to bed," she murmured, fighting back a smile.

Killian blinked, then cocked his head to one side. "Uh...right. Long day. You're probably tired..."

"Nope," Emma let the smile show, just a tiny bit. "I'm not tired at all, really." That was certainly true. Between all of the residual magic coursing through her veins and the added adrenaline she was now feeling from finally making her decision about him, she thought she might not sleep at all that night. That was the plan anyway...

Frowning confusedly, Killian mumbled, "Then why..."

"If I really have to explain it to you, I might start to think that the rumors about your prowess with women are greatly exaggerated," Emma chuckled, slowly running a finger over the buttons down the front of his vest and letting her hand linger over his belt buckle. 

His eyes widened comically, then his eyelids drooped to half mast as he ran his tongue over the back of his front teeth. "You meant my bed," he chuckled huskily and leaned in to kiss her, brushing his lips chastely over hers. His hand tightened firmly on her arm, giving away his true excitement. 

"Took you long enough," Emma smirked just before he scooped her up in his arms and began walking around the side of the cafe toward the Inn behind it. "Ow!" She exclaimed as his hook accidentally scraped her thigh through her jeans.

"Shite!" Killian cursed as he immediately set her back on her feet and bent toward her leg, examining it almost frantically. There was a small tear in the denim, but barely a mark on her leg. "Fuck! I'm so sorry," he said, looking crestfallen. 

"It's alright, Killian," Emma said reassuringly. "I can fix it."

"It's not alright," he muttered, pacing back and forth a few times before he stopped and glared at his hook. "I could have hurt you."

"But you didn't," Emma reminded him. "I'm fine."

"I hate this thing," he growled, grasping the hook and twisting until it separated from the socket in the leather base with a click. 

Emma watched in dismay as he suddenly hurled it into the dark woods beside the Inn. "Killian!" She took a few steps after it, then stopped, knowing they'd never find it in the dark. Turning back toward the street, she said, "I have a flashlight in my car."

"Forget it, love," Killian sighed. "I don't want the damn thing."

"Killian..." Emma put her hands on her hips. "You need it."

"Not right now, I don't," he shook his head and reached for her hand, squeezing it gently. "I'll look for it in the morning. Now, where were we?"

Emma glanced at the woods one last time, then smiled at him. "You were going to show me if the stories about you are true."

"It doesn't matter if those stories were true," he smiled sheepishly. "None of those women mattered to me. This is going to be different." He pulled her closer and kissed her deeply, sucking her lower lip and then nipping it until she gasped, allowing him to slip his tongue into her mouth.

Emma moaned and slid her free hand up into his hair, holding him close as she let him explore her mouth before pushing her own tongue past his and licking his bottom lip. 

Groaning loudly, he pulled his hand free and slid it up her arm, then down over her shoulder and collarbone to rest lightly over her left breast, kneading it gently. His left arm settled around her waist, pinning her lower body against him as he rocked his hips into hers. His outburst obviously hadn't done anything to diminish his arousal. 

"Mmm...inside...bed..." Emma mumbled. 

"Yes," Killian began walking backwards toward the Inn's front steps, pulling her along with him. His boots struck the edge of the bottom step sooner than either of them expected and he fell on his butt on the the third step. Emma tumbled forward into his lap and they both burst out laughing. 

"Okay, maybe we should just try walking up to your room like normal human beings before one of us breaks something?" Emma suggested when she finally caught her breath. "I need to learn how to do that smoky teleporting thing Regina does..."

"You think?" Killian chuckled. "I'm beginning to think we might want to invest in padded armor before this night is through..."

"A padded room maybe," Emma smirked.

"I'm not even sure what that means, but it sounds like it could be fun," Killian grinned. "Come on. ..up!" He stood up and hoisted her to her feet, offering her his right arm. "Milady?"

Emma couldn't keep the cheesy smile off her face as she accepted. They quickly made their way upstairs to his room, pausing only briefly to acknowledge Ruby, who smirked knowingly at them from behind the check in desk. "Great...I think we just made the morning paper," she joked as they all but ran up the stairs. "I can see it now...'Pirate Plunders Princess'...David is definitely going to kill you."

"I told you, I can handle your father," Killian rolled his eyes. Taking out his key, he stuck it in the lock on his door. "It's your mum that scares me," he whispered conspiratorially, unlocking the door and twisting the knob in one smooth motion. Pushing the door open, he smiled a bit nervously and motioned for her to step inside. "Ladies first."

"Ladies? I thought it was just gonna be the two of us..." Emma winked mischievously. 

"Very funny, love," he snorted, closing the door and taking her hand. "You know you're the only woman for me from now on." Before she could make another lame attempt to ease her nervousness, he stepped closer and cut her off by kissing her deeply and sliding his hand up her side to cup her left breast again. She gasped and put her own hands on his hips, pulling him even closer as she tilted her head to offer him better access to her mouth. 

After a few minutes, she pushed his heavy coat from his shoulders. The damn thing was practically as cumbersome as the armor he'd joked about earlier, and it hit the floor with a loud thump. "How do you wear that all the time?" She asked, pulling her mouth a fraction of an inch from his.

"Centuries of experience. After all these years, I feel naked without it," he shrugged. Following her example, he pulled off her jacket. He seemed to have a bit of trouble managing it without his hook, but Emma pretended not to notice. 

"Don't you get hot though?" She asked, starting on the buttons of his vest. Why the hell did the man have to wear so many layers?

"Not so much with our new friend around..." he mumbled, ducking his head to kiss her neck while she freed him from the thick vest. "Your turn..." he ran his fingers over the bottom hem of her shirt, then began to ease it up over her stomach. This time he definitely struggled while trying to pull both sides up at once, so Emma quickly removed it herself, shaking her hair out around her shoulders once she was done. She stopped self-consciously when he lowered his eyes to her lace covered breasts.

"I must say modern ladies' undergarments are a huge improvement over what I'm accustomed to," he announced finally. Wiggling his eyebrows, he leaned down and kissed the exposed skin of her cleavage. "You are truly lovely, Emma," he whispered huskily. 

"If you say so," she shrugged, distracted by the sight revealed when she began to unbutton his shirt. He was a lot more muscular than she'd expected. He wasn't bulky, but his shoulders were very well developed and once the shirt was completely undone she realized he had a six pack a lot of men would kill for. "You really need to stop covering all of this up," she murmured appreciatively, running her hand lightly over the ridges of his abdominal muscles before moving to pull the shirt off completely. It got caught up on the leather straps and cup of his brace, and he cursed quietly as he tried to help her free it. "Just take it off," she whispered, reaching for one of the buckles that held it in place.

"I never take it off in the presence of others," he said tightly.

"Would you have taken it off around Milah?" She asked pointedly. "I've already seen you without it, anyway. In the hospital..."

His jaw clenched for a moment, but then he sighed and began to slowly undo the buckles. When the last one came free, the whole thing slid off, bringing the tangled shirt with it. He quickly moved his arm slightly behind himself and Emma sighed.

"I've seen it," she repeated quietly. "I can handle it." Running her hand down from his shoulder and over his bicep, she reached around and pulled his arm forward by the elbow. "Oh," she mumbled, slightly surprised. She'd seen his stump before, technically, but she hadn't really paid any attention to it at that point because she was so furious with him at the time. She thought by his behavior that it must be really grotesque, but compared to others she'd seen, most of them on war vets, it was remarkably...smooth, for lack of a better word. Rumplestiltskin must've magically sealed the wound or something, or he'd found a magical healer. Instead of a twisted scar at the end, his arm just...stopped. The skin was almost completely smooth over the knob of his wrist. 

"Don't..." he pulled his arm free and held it behind him again.

"It isn't that bad, Killian," she said reassuringly. 

"Yeah? You try living with it," he replied coldly. 

"I didn't mean it like that," Emma exclaimed quickly. "I just meant it doesn't look bad."

"I know what you meant," he sighed, rubbing the bridge of his nose tiredly. "Can we drop it?"

"Consider it dropped," Emma nodded quickly. Stepping closer, she wrapped her arms around his waist and hugged him tightly, savoring the feeling of his bare skin against her own. 

He stood stiffly for a few seconds, then relaxed in her embrace and brought his arms around her, kissing her shoulder. "I'm sorry, love. I just hate it. It reminds me of how I failed her..."

"You didn't fail her. Rumple did. What kind of monster kills the mother of his child, no matter what she did? They obviously weren't happy together. And...well...you didn't actually kidnap her, did you?"

"No," he shook his head. "But I didn't stop him when he had her heart in his hand. I just watched while he crushed the life out of her. I couldn't do anything..." he trailed off sadly. "He took my hand so I'd never forget...and I can't. I'll never forgive myself for being the reason Baelfire grew up without his mum."

"She chose to leave Rumple," Emma frowned thoughtfully and pulled him even closer, gently rubbing his back. "And Neal forgave you," she reminded him softly. "You took care of him when his own father couldn't, or wouldn't. You taught him how to fight and survive. You shouldn't beat yourself up. You're a good man, Killian."

Killian tightened his arms around her and buried his face against the side of her neck. "I'm not sure I'd say that, love, but you make me want to be," he whispered, his breath tickling her skin.

Emma smiled sadly and turned her head, kissing him on the cheek. "You're good enough for me."

He snorted softly, but turned toward her and gently kissed her on the lips. "That's all I aspire to," he smiled sheepishly. "I'm afraid I've rather killed the mood, though..."

"Oh, I wouldn't give up just yet," Emma smiled encouragingly. Pulling out of his embrace, she grabbed his hand and led him over to the bed. Pushing on his shoulders, she made him sit on the edge, then kicked off her boots and knelt in front of him. 

"What are you doing?" He asked, reaching out to brush her hair out of her face.

"There you go making me wonder about those stories about you again," Emma teased gently. "I'm not giving up on the mood, that's what I'm doing." As she spoke, she slowly tugged off his right boot and set it aside.

"Ah, well, I know once you make up your mind to do something, there's no stopping you..." he grinned, some of the sparkle coming back to his eyes. "Far be it from me to try."

"Good boy," Emma pulled off the other boot, then both of his socks and winked. Swallowing nervously, she slid her hands up his leather clad legs and reached for his belt. Her hands began to tremble slightly, but she managed to undo it and then began to work on the leather lacings on his trousers. "Ugh...this is why zippers were invented!" She complained a few minutes later after making no progress. 

"It just takes practice, love," Killian grinned. Batting her hands away, he pulled on the leather cord and the knot instantly came apart.

"How did you do that?" Emma gasped, staring in disbelief. 

"I might be crippled, but I wouldn't be much of a pirate if I couldn't untie a simple knot," he laughed, bending to kiss her on the forehead. 

"Show off," Emma rolled her eyes good naturedly. Biting her lip, she turned her attention back to his trousers and carefully loosened the laces before pulling the edges apart. It quickly became apparent that he wasn't wearing anything underneath, and she licked her lips unconsciously as she grabbed the waistband and started to tug them down over his hips. "A little help?" She glanced up at him expectantly. 

"Of course," he smiled and leaned back, bracing himself on his elbows so he could raise his hips, allowing her to pull the trousers down his thighs.

Emma avoided looking at him while she finished removing them and set them on a nearby chair. Her palms were beginning to sweat when she finally glanced up at his face and found him watching her with his lower lip caught between his teeth. He was still partially reclined, resting on his elbows, so she only had to lower her gaze a few inches to see that 'the mood' was very much alive again.

"Um, so that worked," she quipped. Her voice cracked slightly and Killian chuckled softly. 

"Come here," he requested, swinging his legs up onto the bed and moving up to recline against the pillows. "Get off the floor."

Emma stood up and paused for a second, then stripped off her jeans and socks before crawling onto the bed next to him. He slipped his hand around the back of her neck and pulled her down beside him. They rolled on their sides facing each other and stared at each other for a minute, smiling a bit awkwardly. 

"Are you sure about this?" Killian asked uncertainly.

"Of course," Emma said without hesitation. "It's just been kind of a long time, and the last guy ended up being a monkey."

Killian laughed loudly. "I promise, I'm not a monkey, or any other sort of ape or furry creature in general."

Emma put her hand on his chest, lightly pulling on the curly black hairs scattered there. "You sure about that?" She asked sarcastically. 

"Well, I've been called a pig a few times," he mused thoughtfully. "They're usually less hairy though."

Emma laughed and pulled on his left shoulder until he rolled partially on top of her. "Shut up and kiss me, Porky."

He chuckled and pressed his lips to hers. She sucked his lower lip between her teeth and bit down hard enough to make him gasp, then thrust her tongue into his mouth. He growled playfully and tried to force his own tongue into hers, which sparked a brief battle for dominance. Emma lost (or won) when he distracted her by removing her bra and gently pinching her left nipple. She retaliated by reaching between them and finally giving into the urge to touch him.

"Oh god!" He moaned, throwing his head back and closing his eyes as she wrapped her fingers around him. "Emma, fuck!" He proceeded to demonstrate that he was definitely a sailor, letting loose a long stream of profanities (some of which Emma had never even heard before). She stroked him vigorously for a few minutes, making sure to swipe her thumb over the tip on every upstroke. He was finally reduced to nonsensical babbling when she reached down with her free hand and began rolling his testicles between her fingers, and she smiled smugly. Then, just as she felt his sac draw up close to his body, he gasped, "Stop. Stop!" and started tugging frantically on the left side of her underwear. 

Understanding his intentions immediately, she released him and quickly removed her panties, throwing them somewhere over his shoulder. He wasted no time in slipping two fingers deep inside her and swirling his thumb around her clit. "Bloody hell, love," he ground out when she stubbornly took him back in her hand again. "I'd like to take this slow. At least the first time."

"Haven't we gone slow enough?" She asked, then gasped softly as he curled his fingers inside her, making her shudder. "Oh god that's good..." she moaned. "Don't stop!"

"Wouldn't dream of it," he smirked, adding a third finger and rubbing more firmly against her clit. 

Emma let out a brief startled laugh when she realized a small orgasm was already rushing through her, sort of like a pulse of warm water that left her toes curling and her body trembling. "H-how did you do that so fast?" She mumbled dazedly into his shoulder once she could speak again.

"You're the one who keeps bringing up the stories. When a man has only one hand, he has to learn to compensate with the other," he said, looking far too proud of himself. 

Emma laughed softly and grabbed his shoulders, pulling him further on top of her. He smiled softly and kissed her forehead, nose, cheeks and chin before lightly pressing his lips to hers. Pulling back a bit, he whispered, "Are you ready, love?"

Feeling a bit too overwhelmed to trust her voice, Emma just smiled and nodded, wrapping her arms around him and lightly stroking his back and shoulders as he reached down and lined himself up.

"I love you," he mumbled, kissing her again as he slowly pushed inside her. They both gasped once he was fully sheathed. 

"God..." Emma moaned, closing her eyes and arching against him. Even though she'd literally just come, she already felt like she was on the verge again. "You're perfect..." she whispered, flexing around him and moaning again. 

She wouldn't have blamed him if he made a smart ass remark. She'd certainly opened herself up for one, but all he did was let out a deep, shuddering sigh and nuzzle against her neck. "You feel so good. So right." He brought both arms up, cupping her left cheek in his hand while his left forearm brushed against her right ear. 

Emma barely noticed, until he yanked his left arm away and buried it under the pillow beneath her head. Frowning slightly, sad that he was still so self conscious about his injury, she rocked her hips against him to distract him. "Move, please." 

He grunted and began rolling his hips against her, steadily building up speed until they were both panting and groaning loudly. Emma slid her hands down to squeeze his ass, trying to bring him closer, and he reached to pull her legs higher around his waist. This allowed him to thrust just a bit deeper and Emma's breath caught in her throat as her inner muscles began to tighten around him. "Yes, that's it, love," he murmured, kissing her neck and shoulders before nibbling on her collarbone. 

Emma moaned loudly, feeling a bubble of warmth building in her lower abdomen. A tingle of energy went up and down her spine and her eyes flew open as she realized that what she was feeling wasn't just her approaching orgasm. Her magic was building up again along with it. She couldn't bring herself to care at the moment though. The way Killian felt inside her, what just having him like this after so long was doing to her; she was definitely going to come again, and soon. Just the thought had her twitching and fluttering around him. 

Killian lifted his head just then and smiled down at her so openly, with so much love in his eyes, that it was like a dam breaking in her chest. All of her feelings for him welled up and she smiled back, hoping he could see how much she loved him in return. When the bubble finally exploded, she closed her eyes, grabbed his shoulders and let go. Bright flashes of white sparked behind her eyelids and her whole body tensed as all of her nerves seemed to fire at once. She involuntarily raked her nails down his arms and he stiffened and cried out. She winced, hoping that she hadn't scratched him too badly.

The flashes in her vision slowly dimmed as her heart rate and breathing slowly came back to normal. Killian slumped on top of her and she felt herself go completely limp beneath him as an almost crushing lethargy took over her. She barely managed to pry her eyes open for a second before they stubbornly slid shut again. "Wow," she mumbled tiredly. 

"Mmmm," Killian hummed contentedly and kissed her cheek. "Have I mentioned that I love you?"

"You might have brought it up," Emma chuckled weakly. Wrapping her arms around him, she asked, "Can I keep you?"

"I'd prefer it, really," she felt him smile against her neck.

They laid like that for a while, with him occasionally kissing her neck or shoulder and Emma gently rubbing his back and shoulders. Finally he groaned, "I must be getting heavy, love," and moved off her before she could object.

"Shit, your arms," she winced when he flopped on his back beside her and she finally got a good look at the scratches she'd given him on his right arm. She sat up and looked closer. Dark red gouges ran down both of his biceps from shoulder to elbow. Blood trickled slowly from a few spots.

"It's nothing, love," he shrugged, carelessly flexing his left arm. He failed to hide a slight wince.

"That's not nothing," she frowned guilty. "You're bleeding."

"Hardly the first time," he said, smiling reassuringly. "I'll be fine."

Emma continued to frown, then perked up as a thought occurred to her. "Maybe I can heal them."

"What?" He asked dubiously.

"Well, I've got all this magic going through me right now and Regina was trying to teach me a few spells before...you know," she grimaced, thinking of Marian. "She said that because I have basically white magic, I might be really good at healing spells, but I haven't had a chance to try any of them, surprisingly."

"Not to be rude, but do you really think you have enough control for that?" He asked hesitantly. 

"I saved you today, didn't I?" She pointed out. "Come on, it's just a little healing spell, and I really need to use up some of this excess magic. It's driving me nuts. I'm all jittery."

"Fine," he said after a moment. 

Emma tried to ignore how nervous he looked. Taking his right arm in her hands, she closed her eyes and tried to picture it healthy and unscratched. Her hands tingled and pulsed with warmth for several seconds and Killian moaned softly. Opening her eyes when the tingly heat faded, she let out a little, "Yay!" when she found his arm completely healed. "Give me the other one!" she demanded excitedly. 

Killian chuckled, "Bossy little Princess, aren't we?" He teased as he rolled onto his side facing her so she could reach his left arm.

Emma stuck out her tongue playfully, then grasped his left elbow and closed her eyes again. Once again, she concentrated on an image of his arm without the scratches. Then, she bit her lip and pictured it completely healed. It seemed like the warm tingly sensation went on a lot longer this time.

"What are you doing?" Killian gasped breathlessly after a few seconds, jerking slightly. "Emma?"

Emma tightened her grip and held the image of him with two undamaged arms in her mind until her magic stopped flowing. She was almost afraid to look, for fear of disappointment. When Killian gently tugged his elbow from her grip, she let him, still keeping her eyes closed. 

"Uh...Emma?" He whispered, sounding a bit dazed. "Love..."

"Did it work?" She asked quietly. 

"Remind me never to question your magic again," he laughed softly. Suddenly, she felt hands cupping both her cheeks as he kissed her deeply. "Thank you, love. Thank you." His voice was choked with emotion and she felt wetness on his cheeks. 

Emma opened her eyes and grabbed his left hand. It looked completely normal, like it had never been gone. "Well, crap," she mumbled, fighting back happy tears of her own.

"What?" Killian asked, raising his eyebrows incredulously. 

"Now I've got to take you to buy more rings," she said teasingly, smiling and wiping his cheeks one at a time with her free hand.

He rolled his eyes and used her grip on his hand to pull her close for another kiss. "If you think I'm letting you out of this bed anytime soon, you're sorely mistaken," he mumbled against her lips as he wrapped his arms around her and pushed her down against the mattress. 

"I honestly can't think of anywhere else I'd rather be," Emma informed him seriously.


End file.
